E Collar Training For Beginners: Acclimate to Vibration

[@binmanblog]

I hope I can learn to use the E collar as well as Holly did. Thanks for the video

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

I'm glad you liked the video! Acclimating to vibration can be easy and a lot of fun as long as you have a plan. A lot of people just pop the collar on and push the button and the dog ends up getting nervous. Thanks for taking the time to drop a comment and feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

[@allisoncole08]

Thank you I am so thankful we found your videos! Watching them on airplay today

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Great!!! Feel free to reach out with questions anytime!

[@VOMom22]

I'd like to have this collar for hiking and off leash walking for the "come" command, but we also have an e-fence in our yard. How do i distinguish the difference between the 2 collars? One is warning, one is "fun"???

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

If the dog is already trained on the electronic fence adding the new one should be fairly easy. I would start the training away from home so the dog understands it is not the same rules as the yard. I would also make sure to spend a lot of time on pager/vibration first so they understand what to do and enjoy their new collar.

[@VOMom22]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining Thank you so much! Great ideas! Cheers!

[@robinway9631]

I'm a beginning e collar uder I train my own dog and I know all the basics and more advanced things so how do I get my Boston Bull terrier to recall to the vibration on the e-collar? Help me

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Does your Boston already recall well without it? If so, I would basically just do what is in this video. Do a short session with lots of treats (even if you don't normally train with food). This will ensure the dog knows the vibration is not a bad thing. Then practice 15 minutes a day and after a few days you should be able to push the vibration and say nothing and the dog should understand to come to you.

[@markh9990]

Great video. My dog keeps jumping up on our table and kitchen units to eat food. I’ve bought an e-collar to try and stop it. Do you have any suggestions as to how I might use it to stop this behaviour? I was going to use it as a deterrent but I noticed from your video that you said not to do that and use it as a positive experience. He is a 2 year old golden retriever. Any help appreciated. Thank you. Mark

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Great question Mark! We don't ever use the vibration as a correction, but the stim function can definitely be used that way. Here is a video of us working with a Golden Retriever who steals food from the counter. kzbin.info/www/bejne/sIi5hH6KeJ2pic0 We don't use an e collar in the video but it could be used. I would watch the video and practice for a few days without the e collar and then consider using it if needed. I would definitely spend some time dialing in the level first to make sure you don't over correct. Getting good contact with a Golden can be an issue due to the fur. Here is a video on how we acclimate a dog to the stim function to get the proper working level. In this video we start with the heel command and then move to off leash come. The initial goal is to find a level that the dog cares about but that doesn't scare them. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nH_XYZtsnc53h9E Want type of collar did you get?

[@markh9990]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining Thank you! I watched the video and will start trying this tomorrow! Thanks again.

[@Wentr-z]

@@markh9990 Have you used your e collar for stopping bad behaviors yet? did the video you watch help? i bought a e collar to teach her to come, and stop her from jumping on my son and eating off the counters. havent used it yet, dont wanna mess this up

[@Wentr-z]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining .

[@markherrington7562]

@@Wentr-z Hi Tezzy - apologies for the delay. I've had no success yet but I think it's because I can't get a good weeks run at it to make it become a habit. I'm hoping to start again in two weeks time when I have a bit more time. He is very willing to learn however so I'm still holding out some hope!

[@Ducky0311]

if u vibrate do u let it vibrate once or keep it pressed untill the dog comes? same question but with the shock/stim function?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We generally use short presses of the button but it really depends on the dog. If the dog understands the collar well and just seems a little distracted we will hold the vibrate longer if needed. Definitely don't do this during the first session though because some dogs can become nervous of the vibration if they don't understand what it is supposed to mean. The stim function is a similar answer. It is crucial that the dog understands the stim well and you know their proper working level before using it. The proper working level should get their attention but it should not make them nervous or uncomfortable. Once you have a proper working level there is nothing wrong with pressing the button for a little longer if the dog is very distracted.

[@samanthanesselroade42]

When you train the vibration/come command, is it the only command you can teach them to associate with that buzz? For example, if I wanted to teach my dog to “place” at home, and “come” outside of it?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

I generally only use it for come, but you could use it for both place and come if you make some slight changes. We usually say "come" right as we vibrate but if you did it that way your dog would learn vibration means come and could end up confused in the house when you want them to place. If you want to use vibration for both I would probably teach the dog that the vibration means look at me. That is what I often do with deaf dogs. Then you could follow up with a hand signal or verbal command to ask them to come or place. Hopefully I explained that well, its always harder to type than it is to explain verbally.

[@allyssamartz7680]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraininghi! Follow up- I have one to help correct her barking and overall behavior modification. Would “look” still be our best connection command? (She does know look and come pretty well, but her recall is not perfect quite yet). Also please take my term “correction” as lightly as possible, I want positive reinforcement but this one seems a little tricky.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

​@@allyssamartz7680 Trying to stop undesirable behavior without a correction is challenging. If a dog knows you don't like something but continues to do it a correction is almost certainly needed. To me this is where the difference between using a lot of positive reinforcement and using purely positive reinforcement comes in. A vibration can be used as a correction if the dog perceives it as one. A lot of people use the vibration that way, but then you can't use it for come or the dog will likely become confused. In your situation I would probably use a verbal command for "look" and then pair the vibration with "no" when the dog is barking and won't stop. Feel free to reach out with any questions!

[@theBullringLive]

Could you use say one click for "come", 2 clicks for "down", 3 clicks for-----?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

@@theBullringLive Absolutely! It will take some work to make sure the dog waits for the whole sequence before trying to listen. Be patient though because it will take way longer than training those commands to different hand signals or voice commands.

[@NMD-o4i]

Why we don't use vibration as a correction? My first intention was to use it as a correction and don't use stim but in exceptional situations (with proper acclimatization). I'd like to know the explication about this method :) Nice video!

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Great question! Although that is not how we train, you could absolutely use the vibration as a correction and there would be no problems with that method of training. The reason we use the vibration as a positive and as the "come" command is that we like to be able to get the dogs attention in highly distracting situations without them feeling like they have done something wrong. When trained in our method the vibration is a fun thing for them! Then the stim can be used as a correction as needed. The amazing thing about the stim on the e collar is how adjustable it is (on a high quality collar). You can correct at such a low level that there is no reason you need two types of correction (vibrate and stim). I would suggest trying the stim function on yourself and seeing what each level feels like. A 15 on a Dogtra collar is almost imperceptible to most people. If you are shopping for collars I would suggest the new 280x that just came out. Here is a link to a review we did on it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/npnLYZiLfd5sps0

[@NMD-o4i]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining awsome answer! thanks so much, i'm loving your job. I was thinking use the sound for get the dog attention, i assume you use vibration because its more effective in getting dogs attention in distracting situations? one last question, do you have any recomendation of a lower priced ecollar? i know its not the bettet idea save money on important things, so im wondering if there are any good options at a lower price. thanks agian!

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

@@NMD-o4i The tone can work great! A lot of collars don't have the tone, but there is nothing wrong with it if your dog responds well. We do find the vibration breaks their focus better, but we do use both depending on the situation. Regarding price, we love Dogtra because of their reliability. It really can be life or death and we need to trust the collar will always work. Check out the 200c. It is a lower priced Dogtra collar that doesn't have bells and whistles, but it is rock solid and reliable. Here is a link: amzn.to/4fgwQXv

[@28maganda]

How many feet should the long line be ? And is there one that you recommend? Love your videos 😊

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

25 feet is fine for many dogs. If your dog tends to bolt then 50-100 feet is a safer option but they do tend to get tangled more. We sell ones that we really like, but unfortunately don’t ship them. Ray Allen sells really high quality dog products. I would probably just buy one there. Thanks for watching!!!

[@drakemia4079]

Thank you so much it will help this old man.

[@heeku_]

what about using the vibration collar for "hill" and get to a level of leash free dog walks? is it a good use case?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Absolutely! A lot of people use the e collar to proof the heel command so that their dog can walk off leash. It really just comes down to your goals.

[@heeku_]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining i wonder if the vibration collar works for kind of one purpose only, or using that any training can be achieved. like how does the vibration secures a hard command like hill, stay, come when there are distractions? seems like the dog needs to realize that when he feels the vibration his attention should be fully move to you and he must not break it until he is "free". ofc not turning the vibration to a negative thing.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We generally use the vibration as an attention getting device and not a correction. That being said, we firmly believe that there must be consequences for dogs purposely disobeying commands they understand. The consequence could be as simple as grabbing their collar and telling them "no" for ignoring whatever command you are working on. You could also use the stim function on the e collar of course. It doesn't need to be and should not be at a high level. Here is a video where we introduce the stim function with a dog. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nH_XYZtsnc53h9E

[@heeku_]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining tysm for the answers! i do have 2 dots to clarify - 1. stim refers to the vibration e-collar right? as i have ordered a vibration collar, no electric shocks. 2. i was a but confused at the end of the 2nd video regarding the correction. u were calling "no" along with pressing the vibration, isnt it something i dont want to do? im probably missing something.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Great questions! The stim is a correction and is different than the vibration. We use the vibration as a positive (we usually tie it to the word come) and the stim as a correction for not listening. You can certainly train without any stim function using a vibration only collar. The first thing you need to decide is this: Is the vibration an indication of what to do or what not to do? Will you use it to mark something you like or as a warning to stop doing something bad? We prefer to use it as a positive but that is not the only way. If you use the vibration as a positive you will need to decide what behaviors will you correct the dogs for and what will you use for a correction? A verbal no works for some dogs. Others may need a lot of training on a long line so that you can stop them when needed. I hope this helps!

[@andreacgarcia77]

How do I know how high to set the vibration? My puppy seems to fully ignore it or not notice it.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

What collar are you using? Most don't have an adjustable vibration. Are you adjusting the stim level?

[@secretagent3764]

It would be good if you could raise or give a signal when you are using the vibration so we know.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Totally understood! Luckily with this particular command the timing is predictable. We push vibrate right as we say "come". The goal is for the dog to learn that vibration=come.

[@stephanieparis33]

Hi! I’ve been watching Tom Davis videos to understand how to use the ecollar and his method confuses me a little because he holds the stim button (at a low level) and gives the dog a command, but I feel like this still relies on the handler being close to the dog to give the command. I was looking for other methods of using the dogtra 280c and found your videos. Pairing the pager function with one specific command all the time makes more sense to me. However I also feel like I would like the ecollar to be able to communicate multiple things. For example, come is obviously a very important use of the ecollar, but what if I wanted to use heel instead so we could continue our hike? Could I use one tap of the pager means come and two taps means heel? Do you think that would work?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Great question Stephanie! We definitely use the collar differently than Tom does. With most dogs we use the vibration as the come command and that is its only purpose. Your idea of using it for heel with two taps could certainly work but it might be easier to just call the dog with the pager and then issue a verbal heel command when needed. That is how I train most dogs. Pager for come and when the get in front of me I tell them heel (if needed) and then have them circle around to the heel position. If you decide to use the stim function (as a correction) here is a video showing how we do that. You will notice it is much different than Tom's method. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nH_XYZtsnc53h9E We only use the stim if they mess up and we are using it to stop undesirable behavior. Reach out with any questions!

[@RiAnnLiVE]

Hi did u try the vibration collar on the way how tom use a stim collar? what was your results?:)

[@antoniosantonios913]

So if it shouldn't be a correction, how about if the k9 is doing some bad (damaging in house property) eg biting a table or couch, can't we use the vibration to deter and create a distraction so they stop damaging?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We generally use the stim function for corrections rather than the vibration. Here is a video on how we acclimate to the stim function. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nH_XYZtsnc53h9E Notice that we spend 15 or 20 minutes finding the exact right working level. This part of the process is extremely important! Please feel free to reach out with any questions!

[@OHSloopyIO]

What about the NO command. Do you give command at the same time you issue the vibration ?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We very rarely use the vibration as a correction. Generally we use it as a positive and say "come" as we vibrate. For a correction I would consider using the stim function. You can use it at a very low level and pair it with "no". That way you have a way to praise and correct from a distance.

[@OHSloopyIO]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining thank you

[@nancydegeorge1143]

Hello. I have a rescue dog who was only used for breeding. She has bad leash reactivity with dogs and people and motorbikes. Any thoughts on e collar training for reactivity please?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

You can definitely use an e collar for reactivity, but we prefer to make a lot of progress on the heel command first with a traditional collar. Really focus on mastering the left and right turn. This ensures your dog truly knows heel before layering in the e collar. When people start the e collar too quickly it is sometimes used a little too heavily because the dog doesn’t know the expectations yet. If you need any guidance on the turns check out our video on Stopping Leash Pulling. Reach out with any questions!

[@nancydegeorge1143]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining thank you so much for your advice

[@abigailyeck1739]

What if you do accidentally start using the e collar with the pager as a correction for the first training session. Is it possible to switch to a positive or would that be to confusing for the dog?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

You can definitely still make a change! Just spend time make the pager extra fun. Pair it with treats, praise or toys at first and soon your pup will love it!

[@sethpierce1477]

Would i be a bad dog owner if i wanted to use the vibration to stop barking while im gone?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

How would you enforce the rules if you aren’t there? Would you be watching on a camera? If so, that is fine! Also, we will be trying out Dogtra’s new smart no bark collar soon and can let you know what we think!

[@drakemia4079]

What kind of treats do you use.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We almost always just use the dog's kibble/food. For the majority of dogs this along with praise will be plenty to get them motivated.

[@drakemia4079]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining thank you very much I will try that. I watch you on UTUB great videos.

[@type2life396]

Do you give the dog a chance to come before using vibrate or stim first or use it anyway as you say come ?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We use the vibrate as we say come. We pair the vibration with come so that through time when the dog feels the vibration they associate it with coming to you. The reason we do it this way is that the vibration is not used as threat or a warning. Its a positive. We never train that way with the stim function though. If we use stim it is only as a correction if the dog has not listened.

[@type2life396]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining Would you use an e collar to deter barking while in a car ? This is when she spots another dog, Verbal No Bark, she continues to bark… would you use stim or vibration to deter ?

[@stephanieparis33]

@@type2life396I’m not a trainer but from my understanding from this video, in the case of deterring barking in the car, you would use the stim as a correction for not listening to your “no bark” command

[@jamesrusso4446]

Can this be safely used to help correct a dogs behavior who is too jumpy and barks at guests? With positive reinforcement only somehow? Or are these never used for corrective purposes? We wanted vibration only no shock to help with our large breed

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Hey James! If you want to use the vibration to stop jumping and barking you will need to do things very differently than we do in this video. The dog will need to be conditioned to the vibration being a bad thing rather than a good thing. Here is a video of how we stop jumping at the door. You could do this and use the vibration collar as a correction in this method. kzbin.info/www/bejne/sJjFe4Sgg7qBbNk

[@jamesrusso4446]

Thank you so much! We have hope!!

[@exitbla]

you set the setting to 0 to start and never increased it so how can u say it was working other than normal commands???

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Great question! The numbers only apply to the stim function, not the vibration. The vibration level is the same no matter what. The reason we recommend setting the stim function to zero for this step is that if you don’t have a lot of e collar experience you could accidentally push the wrong button and correct the dog for no reason. If that happened on their first training session it could really stress them out or make them nervous. Let me know what other questions you have!

[@nancydegeorge1143]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining all that info was with my e collar. A whole book on how to use and precautions. I will always have the 'shock' button turned down. I don't want to use that on my chihuahuas. I going to use the beep and vibration and continue basic training too.

[@VictoriaE77]

My collar seems to be sending a delayed vibration. I am working with my dog on his insane nonstop barking. I hit vibration and it seems delayed in getting to the collar. Am I supposed to hold the button down?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Hey Danielle! What brand/model collar do you have?

[@kurolap]

by pager do you mean vibrate or tone?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

The collar we are using in the video has a vibration for its pager. You train with a tone in the same manner though. We prefer the vibration because it is a little more intense which means it is much better at breaking a dogs focus if they are highly distracted when outside.

[@Alive_In-Christ-Jesus]

What collar are you using

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

That is a Dogtra 280c. Here is a link to it on Amazon. amzn.to/4e1uITc We should have linked it in the description 🤦‍♂️

[@jonroth9796]

Do you stop the vibration as soon as she turns and starts to come to you?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Great question Jon! We generally do a very quick vibration right as we say the word come. Some trainers use the vibration as a form of negative reinforcement by allowing the vibration to be startling/scary and then turn it off when the dog gets to them. That way the dog learns when it comes to them the unpleasant thing stops. We use the vibration very differently and it is meant to be a fun thing for them. That is why we often acclimate it with treats to ensure the dog knows the vibration is a good thing. Once the dog is acclimated to the vibration we can then acclimate them to the stim function on the collar which can be used as a correction if needed. Thanks for watching and reach out with questions any time!

[@jonroth9796]

Thanks!@@SuburbanK9DogTraining

[@watchmoivies123]

So I’m no expert on e-collars but it looks like you’re using this almost like a clicker, a reward for coming back to you, and it looks like the correction was when you took the dog by the collar and gave it a little bit of a pop when it didn’t come to you, but I want to use my collar kind of as a little bit of a correction when my dog doesn’t come to me after I’ve taught him what the stem or the vibration means which in the beginning, I do do what you’re doing and maybe this is just the beginning you’re showing but tell me what you do after the dog has learned the collar and does it well in your backyard but when you’re out on a walk, how do you use that as a correction or do you never?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We use the vibration as a pager and it is definitely meant to be a good thing! We push the vibration as we say "come" and they start to associate the vibration with the come command. We use the stim function as a correction and acclimate it separately from the vibration so that they understand the difference. If you decide to use the e collar on the walk I would use the stim to give a correction at their proper working level. I hope this makes sense!

[@watchmoivies123]

@@SuburbanK9DogTraining oh I’m glad this is how you do it also because I didn’t understand this video because Tammy is just a clicker type thing where when the dog did the behavior with the stem you gave it a cookie I don’t know why you do that but I’m sure there’s a reason for that and yes, I wanna be able to take my dog for a walk after he’s four years old already and I’ve tried every other method so I am going to try an electric collar and I will start on number one and it up to. He has a little bit of a feeling so that’s what I’m gonna do. Do you have a video on that use a regular electric collar and not this vibration sound collar because that would not do anything for my dog. He’s really strong-willed and a powerful breed.

[@Hman946]

I’m a little confused. You’re saying not to use it as a correction but I just came from a video where you used it with a no

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We don’t correct with the vibration/pager. We pair it with calling the dog and want the pager to be a positive. We do use the stim function as a correction and almost always pair that with the word no. I hope this makes sense and please feel free to reach out with follow up questions!

[@natalianino6342]

What does he mean when he says pager? The vibration only? Because if you do want to use it as negative reinforcement when would u do that?

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

We use the term pager to refer to the vibration. That is because we use it as a pager rather than a warning or correction. You mentioned negative reinforcement in your question though. Are you looking to use the vibration as negative reinforcement or positive punishment? An example of negative reinforcement would be holding the vibration while you call the dog and then releasing it when they start to come. An example of positive punishment would be calling the dog and if they ignore you telling them "no" while you push the vibration. Either method is viable as long as you are consistent.

[@tammyraby7630]

I have a Great Dane/ St Bernard mix. Shes 1 year and has 160 acres to run. We are off grid. It was winter for 6 months and she had her first heat cycle and then her spay. Recently she's been free to run and play, however she's become a hunter. Rabbits and birds . She also going to neighbour's and scaring shit out of them when she barks at them. She's never went after a human. I am a hairdressor and she is always within feet of me and clients. So its when I'm not around that she intimidates. Like tge police telling you tgat your teen ager is the neighborhood bully. We have her on run now and starting e collar training today. Baby steps for the giant Jasmine . Lol

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Good luck Tammy! There are some really cool GPS collars you can try if you want the ability to know where she is at all times. Let me know if you need any recommendations!

[@TakeTheRide]

Must be a KZbin thing because I'm hitting the thumbs up like button but it's not doing it. The button seems to be stopped or stuck on 275.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Weird! Sometimes I will look at someone's video and it will show zero likes and then halfway through the video it shows the full number. Thanks for watching!

[@gk-mt3vy]

That's great My voice doesn't carry so far and I am calling (shouting) like Mickey Mouse on Helium....... even me can't stand it We like to go into the woods and this way way I can leave him a bigger distance 🔭

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

😂😂😂 The vibration is awesome and definitely prevents you from having to yell!!!

[@mrsdebbiedunn]

He is not as aware of his dog as he said as it had its lead wrapped around its back legs lol

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

The biggest downside to long lines is that they easily get tangled around paws, trees etc. We often use 50 foot lines because they are long enough to give a decent amount of safety by have less tangle issues than 100 foot lines.

[@lisasternenkind6467]

​@@SuburbanK9DogTrainingthat's one of the reasons why I dislike long leashes. But I also have had problems with my 10 month old Rottweiler taking off suddenly with a long leash attached. 😂

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

@@lisasternenkind6467 Long lines can definitely be a danger! That is one of the reasons we like to get dogs e collar trained. It is so much easier, safer and more fun when they never need a long line again!

[@TakeTheRide]

I can understand if you don't want to show the brand you're using, but not actually showing close-ups of the device and what you're doing with it as well as explaining what the e-collar is around the neck and exactly how it works, is a big lack of information here. Does the car have a device that has problems on it, are they metal are they plastic tipped? Do you need to save your dog's neck down at all for it to fill a collar, if the dog is a water dog, a doodle or a wheaten? So many unanswered questions in this video. I guess I'm giving you a new content right? Lol. Otherwise talk a little bit slower, don't repeat yourself.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Definitely agreed that there are a lot of unanswered questions. Our goal with this video was just to show people how to acclimate a dog to vibration without scaring them. A lot of dogs get scared during this process because they don't know the vibration is coming and then don't know its supposed to be a good thing. We really want people to see that this process is fun for you and the dog when you do it right.

[@WildFlower-r5t]

@@SuburbanK9DogTrainingI really appreciate this video

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

@@WildFlower-r5t Absolutely! I hope it was helpful and definitely reach out with any questions!

[@alvarezgamers]

What really helped to introduce the e collar was working with my dog for about two months with just food and basic commands. Now that he is 4 months old and I get to see what he needs to work on the e collar has been a miracle. Mainly because he knows what I’m trying to communicate just needs that reinforcement with the vibration to help out. Literally took me one session to perfect some of his puppy naughty behaviors such as biting things he shouldn’t and jumping on my three year old. But he is very smart dog so catches on quick.